Scottish Executive

Alcohol Misuse

Pauline McNeill (Glasgow Kelvin) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how it intends to reduce the number of deaths due to alcohol in Glasgow.

Mr Tom McCabe: The plan for action on alcohol problems, which was published in January 2002, sets out a range of local and national measures to reduce alcohol-related harm in Scotland. It provides a framework for action in the areas of culture change, prevention and education, the provision of support and treatment services and protection and controls. Since launching the plan, we have, amongst other things, introduced a national alcohol communications campaign to change cultures surrounding drinking and promote a more responsible approach to alcohol, and provided funding for NHS Health Scotland and Alcohol Focus Scotland to raise awareness of alcohol problems and undertake preventative activities. The partnership agreement commits the Executive to providing additional resources for treatment services in communities across Scotland.

  Greater Glasgow Alcohol Action Team submitted their three-year alcohol action plan in March. Key action in the plan includes a major review and repositioning of addiction treatment, care and homelessness services to improve opportunities for early intervention and ensure a whole system approach to treatment care.

  Glasgow’s plan notes that reversing the upward trend in alcohol-related deaths requires a long-term approach and there needs to be a strong focus on education and prevention together with regeneration and measures to tackle inequalities. There are a wide range of alcohol services and groups running in Glasgow and three community alcohol projects working in the east end, Greater Easterhouse and Pollock. Other action in this area includes the introduction of an arrest referral scheme to target offenders with alcohol problems and route them into treatment services, the development of family support services, the provision of training for primary care teams, social care staff and teachers, a review of school drug and alcohol education and the development of procedures to record alcohol-related incidents, and research to inform service developments and maximise opportunities for early intervention.

  The plan is available at:

  www.scotland.gov.uk/health/alcoholproblems/plans/glasgow.pdf.

Animal Welfare

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when it will consult on proposed animal welfare legislation and when it anticipates introducing a bill on the matter.

Allan Wilson: We anticipate that the first consultation paper on proposed changes to animal welfare legislation will be issued in March and this will be followed by a more detailed consultation paper and a draft bill in the autumn. No exact date has been agreed for the introduction of the bill, but it is expected to be during this Parliament.

Autism

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has received the study into autism involving Autism Unravelled, Action Against Autism, Food and Behaviour Research, Oxford and Stirling universities and the Rowett Research Institute in Aberdeen.

Mr Tom McCabe: The Scottish Executive has not received such a study into autism.

Autism

Donald Gorrie (Central Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what role the Scottish Centre for Autism work at Yorkhill Hospital and the Scottish Society for Autism Executive funded project will play in the development of a diagnosis and assessment centre at New Struan House in Alloa.

Mr Tom McCabe: The Scottish Centre for Autism at Yorkhill Hospital has no role in the development of the diagnosis and assessment centre at New Struan. For the last 10 years it has provided a diagnostic service for children up to the age of 18 years with suspected autistic spectrum disorders by offering second opinions on referrals from NHS boards across Scotland. New Struan House is being developed by the Scottish Society for Autism to provide education, health and social care services, including a diagnosis and assessment centre for people with autistic spectrum disorders.

Birds

Rob Gibson (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it is taking as a result of the action being taken by the European Commission against the UK over failures to ensure sufficient protection of wild birds, in so far as these affect Scotland.

Allan Wilson: I refer the member to the answer given to question S2W-5920. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search .

Drug Misuse

Richard Lochhead (North East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-25157 by Dr Richard Simpson on 1 May 2002, whether it will provide information on the source of referral recorded by new individual patients attending specialist drug services and reported to the Scottish Drug Misuse Database in (a) the current year and (b) each year since 2001-02.

Hugh Henry: Source of referral to specialist drug services recorded by the Scottish Drug Misuse Database for 2001-02 and 2002-03 (the latest year for which figures are available) is outlined in the table.

  Source of Referral to Specialist Drug Services; Years Ending 31 March

  

 New Individual Patients/Clients 
  Only 1
 
 


 
 2001-02
 2002-03


 Referred to Specialist Drug 
  Agencies 3
 9,511
 9,654


 Self referral
 3,253
 3,235


 GP/primary care team
 3,576
 3,308


 Criminal justice - social work
 374
 480


 Criminal justice - other
 255
 346


 Social work - other
 415
 471


 Other specialist drug service
 719
 851


 Family/friend
 89
 88


 Psychiatrist
 25
 18


 Other 4
 667
 677


 No referral source stated
 138
 180



  Source: Scottish Drug Misuse Database.

  Notes:

  1. Reports to the Scottish Drug Misuse Database relating to new patients. ‘New’ is defined as (a) the person is attending the particular service for the first time ever or (b) the person has attended before but not within the previous 6 months.

  2. All figures in this table exclude penal establishment inmates and information received from needle exchanges.

  3. Specialist drug service includes statutory, non-statutory and private services.

  4. Other includes education provider, employer, arrest referral and job centre.

Emergency Services

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the cost was of supporting air ambulances in each year since 1999, broken down by NHS board and expressed also on a per capita basis.

Malcolm Chisholm: The figures requested are contained in the following tables:

  

 NHS Board
 1999-2000
 2000-01


 Total Cost
(£)
 Cost per Capita 
  (£)
 Total Cost
(£)
 Cost per Capita 
  (£)


 Argyll and Clyde
 960,266
 2.28
 1,042,668
 2.48


 Ayrshire and Arran
 176,883
 0.48
 135,791
 0.37


 Borders
 21,747
 0.20
 38,308
 0.36


 Dumfries and Galloway
 123,451
 0.84
 148,817
 1.01


 Fife
 19,202
 0.05
 15,919
 0.05


 Forth Valley
 46,509
 0.17
 15,546
 0.06


 Grampian
 207,010
 0.39
 242,253
 0.46


 Greater Glasgow
 56,715
 0.07
 111,844
 0.13


 Highland
 846,616
 4.05
 1,381,859
 6.61


 Lanarkshire
 49,412
 0.09
 43,486
 0.08


 Lothian
 54,623
 0.07
 61,220
 0.08


 Orkney
 430,761
 22.38
 412,943
 21.46


 Shetland
 693,199
 31.53
 768,252
 34.94


 Tayside
 40,182
 0.10
 30,195
 0.08


 Western Isles
 807,559
 30.47
 841,009
 31.73


 Totals
 4,534,135
 0.90
 5,290,110
 1.05



  

 NHS Board
 2001-02
 2002-03


 Total Cost
(£)
 Cost per Capita 
  (£)
 Total Cost
(£)
 Cost per Capita 
  (£)


 Argyll and Clyde
 1,100,957
 2.62
 1,142,502
 2.72


 Ayrshire and Arran
 225,354
 0.61
 217,188
 0.59


 Borders
 26,780
 0.25
 36,108
 0.34


 Dumfries and Galloway
 103,177
 0.70
 109,734
 0.74


 Fife
 23,913
 0.07
 10,520
 0.03


 Forth Valley
 32,890
 0.12
 33,933
 0.12


 Grampian
 311,661
 0.59
 371,633
 0.71


 Greater Glasgow
 133,725
 0.15
 102,465
 0.12


 Highland
 1,328,113
 6.36
 1,234,352
 5.91


 Lanarkshire
 67,939
 0.12
 60,078
 0.11


 Lothian
 90,833
 0.12
 124,274
 0.16


 Orkney
 430,871
 22.39
 447,871
 23.27


 Shetland
 900,980
 40.98
 845,250
 38.44


 Tayside
 58,304
 0.15
 61,956
 0.16


 Western Isles
 876,236
 33.06
 973,580
 36.74


 Totals
 5,711,733
 1.13
 5,771,444
 1.14

Environment

Ms Rosemary Byrne (South of Scotland) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the disposal of biosolids will be subject to regulation under the proposed Strategic Environmental Assessment bill.

Allan Wilson: The proposed Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) bill remains open to further public consultation and Parliamentary process. The intension of the SEA bill is to ensure that the positive and negative environmental consequences of strategic level plans are fully considered. Therefore the strategic plans for waste disposal, including biosolids, would likely be subject to the provisions of the bill.

Honours

Richard Lochhead (North East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether there have been, or will be, any discussions with Her Majesty's Government in respect of the honours system and, if so, whether there are any plans to enable Scotland to develop its own honours system.

Mr Jack McConnell: Honours are reserved to the UK Government, and are awarded by Her Majesty The Queen on the advice of the Prime Minister. The Scottish Executive is invited by the Prime Minister to submit recommendations which are considered alongside other UK recommendations. Discussions on the operation of the system occur when required.

Justice

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2O-1061 by Cathy Jamieson on 15 January 2004 and its news release SEFD 348/2004, whether the £400,000 announced to "help establish a co-located justice centre in Rosetta Road, Peebles" represents additional capital funding or borrowing consent and whether discussions between Lothian and Borders Police and the Executive's Police Division have now reached a conclusion and, if so, what that conclusion is.

Cathy Jamieson: The announcement of £400,000, which follows discussions between the Scottish Executive, Lothian and Borders Police and the Scottish Borders Council, represents additional capital consent. The Rosetta Road project will now go forward. The next stage is for Lothian and Borders Police, in consultation with the Scottish Borders Council.

Land

Rob Gibson (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the average increase has been in land values in each region since 1993.

Allan Wilson: The Scottish Executive does not hold information on land sales at the level of detail requested. However, a historic series of sales of equipped farms is published in the Economic Report on Scottish Agriculture (ERSA) and can be viewed at the following location:

  ERSA 2003 Table C12

  http://www.scotland.gov.uk/library5/agri/ersa03-52.asp

  The table shows sales subtotalled for Less Favoured Areas and Non-Less Favoured Areas as well as at the Scotland level.

Land

Rob Gibson (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the average rental values of agricultural land have been in each region in each year since 1993.

Allan Wilson: The Scottish Executive does not hold information on rental values of agricultural land at the level of detail requested. The annual SEERAD Tenanted Land Survey produces average rental values by farm type and these can be viewed in the Economic Report on Scottish Agriculture (ERSA) at the following location:

  ERSA 2003 Table A17

  http://www.scotland.gov.uk/library5/agri/ersa03-18.asp#3

  The survey sample is not stratified by region, and as such it is not possible to produce a reliable time series of farm rents on a regional basis.

Regulation of Care

David Mundell (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what research it has carried out into the inter-relationship between the benefit system and the potential extension of free personal care to under-65s with specified medical conditions.

Mr Tom McCabe: The Executive has always been clear that issues affecting other care groups are not merely an extension of those for older people . These are complex needs which need to be looked at in more detail and would impact more directly on reserved matters such as the benefits system and employment law. We are currently scoping possible research into the range of needs and services for other care groups, such as young disabled people.

Regulation of Care

Campbell Martin (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether, under the Regulation of Care (Scotland) Act 2001 or any other legislation, tenants of residential homes attached by an internal corridor to residential care units are prevented from entering or frequenting such units and, if so, what the reasons are for these provisions.

Mr Tom McCabe: The Regulation of Care (Scotland) Act 2001 and subordinate legislation made under that act enables regulation of the standard and fitness of premises used to provide care services for the purpose of ensuring the safety and well-being of the care service users.

  The application and interpretation of the act (and associated subordinate legislation) is an operational matter for the Care Commission. If the member has a specific case in mind I would invite him to write directly to Jacquie Roberts, Chief Executive of the Care Commission.

Scottish Executive Staff

Ms Wendy Alexander (Paisley North) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many staff are currently employed in its performance and innovation unit.

Mr Andy Kerr: Two members of Scottish Executive staff currently work in the performance and innovation unit, although it is able to draw on inputs from a wider range of staff. One is Mr Nick Parker, who took up post as head of the unit on 2 February. One of his first tasks is to plan the programme of work for the unit in the months ahead, within areas of activity determined by ministers. Staff resources will be built up on the basis of this assessment. It is envisaged that a substantial proportion of the staff engaged on individual projects will be seconded by organisations outwith the Executive rather than employed by the Executive.

Tourism

Mr David Davidson (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans for area tourist boards to become city region based.

Mr Frank McAveety: The ministerial group on tourism has been examining the state of Scottish tourism, and the public expenditure devoted to it. We are considering the area tourist board review in the context of these wider issues. It is important that any reshaping of the area tourist board structure is right for today’s market and will stand us in good stead for the future. We hope to announce the goup’s conclusions in due course.

Water Supply

Brian Adam (Aberdeen North) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many private water supplies there are, broken down by local authority area.

Allan Wilson: The figures are published annually in the report "Drinking Water Quality in Scotland". A copy of the latest report is available from the Parliament’s Reference Centre (Bib. number 31063).